The term "fabrics" is used to mean any woven or nonwoven material made from natural or synthetic fibers or a combination thereof having a planar structure including smooth or figured cloths such as cotton cloth or cotton blends generally referred to as "denim" or "twill" and any finished textile products made from such materials including trousers, coats, shirts, blouses, skirts, and the like.
Fabrics such as denim or twill having a randomly decolorized or faded effect throughout the entirety of the fabric are very popular. However, to produce the desired effect it has been necessary to utilize processes which sometimes cause substantial deterioration or degradation of the fabric. Bleaching solutions containing chlorine or abrading the garments with sand or stone in the absence of chemical in order to produce the desired fashion effect typically result in damage to the fabrics which ultimately reduces the wear life of garments made from the fabrics.
In an attempt to improve the decolorization or fading of fabrics, an ozone oxidation technique was developed. Ozone has been known to be used for bleaching of cellulosic materials for many years as evidenced by U.S. Pat. No. 2,446,633 to Brabender et al. Likewise, Wasinger et al. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,118,322; 5,261,925; 5,313,811; and 5,342,415 disclose various methods for ozone treatment of fabrics using blocking agents. According to Wasinger et al. the blocking agents are applied to the fabric in selected areas so that they cover the areas of the fabric to be shielded from ozone attack. However, the known methods for applying blocking agents are quite labor intensive and thus do not readily lend themselves to commercial scale operations.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a commercially viable means for randomly decolorizing or fading fabrics.
Another object of the invention is to provide a means for adding a fabric treating agent to a fabric in order to enhance the random oxidation of the fabric.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a delivery system for a treating agent to a fabric for use in the random decolorization of the fabric using an oxidizing agent, whereby damage to the fabric is minimized.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a less labor intensive method for treating multiple garments in a batch, continuous or semi-continuous operation in order to obtain randomly faded or decolorized fabrics.
Another object of the invention is to produce randomly faded or decolorized fabrics by use of techniques for improved application of treating and oxidizing agents to fabrics.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will be evident from the following disclosure and appended claims.